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(No Model.)

E. P. BIRKHOLZ. MANUAL BOAT PROPULSION.

Patented-Apr. 16,1895.

.. NITED STATES PATENT OFFICE@V EMIL E. BIRKI-IOLZ, OF EDEN, IVISCONSIN,ASSIGNOR OF ONE-THIRD TO FREDERICK WOLF, OE `SAME PLACE.

MANUAL BOAT PROPULSION.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 537,435, dated April16, 1895. Application filed November 17, 1894' Serial No. 529,123. (Nomodel.)

To all whom it may concern'.-

Be it known that I, EMIL F. BIRKHOLZ, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of Eden, in the county of Fond du Lac and State ofWisconsin, have invented certain new and usefullmprovements inPropelling Boats; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full,clear, and exact description thereof.

My invention has for its object to provide a boat with simple,economical and effective propelling apparatus especially designed foroperation by manual power, the peculiarities' of construction andcombination of parts embodied in said apparatus being hereinafterspecified with` reference to the accompanying drawings and subsequentlyclaimed.

In the drawings: Figure 1 represents my improved boat propellingapparatus as viewed in section on line 1--1 of the succeeding tigure;Fig. 2, a side elevation of the same the propeller-wheel casing in thisgure being in section on line 2-2 of the preceding figure, and Fig. 3, adetail view illustrating means for clutching a crank on a drive-shaftembodied in said apparatus.

Referring by letter to the drawings, A represents the bottom of a boatprovided with suitable openings covered by casings B, and

these casings are provided with bearings b for a shaft OV that carriespropellerrwheels the latter being within said casings and operatingthrough the bottom openings of the boat.

A pinion E fast on the wheel shaft O is in mesh with a gear-wheel Fcarried by a counter-shaft G that turns in standards H rising from thecasings B, andthe gear-wheel has a pinion-hub I in mesh with anothergear-wheel .I fast on a drive-shaft K, the bearings c for the lattershaft being lateral extensions of arms L that are loose on thecounter-shaft to be thus in pivotal connection with said standards.

The lower ends of the arms L are provided 'with segmental slots d, andset-screws M engaging the slots and the standards H hold said arms inpivotal adjustment.

The drive-shaft K is shown as provided with ratchet-wheels N, and cranksl? loose on said shaft have spring-controlled dogs e that automaticallyengage with the ratchet-wheels. The cranks being in clutch connectionwith the ratchet wheels rotary motion may be readily imparted to thedrive-shaft, and when not in use said cranks will automatically assume adepending vertical position so as to be as much as possible out of theway. However I do not wish to be understood as confining myself to loosecranks in clutch-connection with the drive-shaft, as rigid cranks may beemployed.

Rotary motion imparted to the driveshaft is transmitted to thepropeller-wheels by means of the gearing above specified, and saiddrive-shaft being supported by pivotally adjustable arms, its height maybe readily regulated, within certain limits, to suit the convenience ofthose operating the cranks.

As herein shown, I prefer to have the propeller-wheels in the form ofdrums l) provided with peripheral blades f, each of which is oblique tothe axis of the relative drum and flanked at each end by aright-angleange g, the flange at one end being extended in a direction oppositethat at the other as best illustrated by the elevation of one of saidwheels in Fig. 2. These propeller Wheels will turnin weeds Withoutclogging, and in action they draw water from the sides of thev boattoward the center whereby said boat tends to lift and the draft islightened.

In addition to the advantages just specified,

`the preferred form of propeller-wheels will not wind Water, and incasevtheir blades strike bottom said wheels will operate astractionwheels to propel the boat over shoal places.

The herein described gearing may be utilized in connection withpropeller wheels of various` designs, and said wheels of the form hereinshown may be driven by various arrangements of gearing.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letter Patent, is

1. The combination of a boat and incased propeller-wheels extendingthrough the bottom of the same,with a gearing comprising a pinion on ashaft carrying the propellerwheels, a counter-shaf t having its bearingsin standards rising from the Wheel-casings, a gear-wheel fast on thecounter-shaft and provided with a pinion-hub, arms pivotally adroo justable on the standards, a drive-shaft snpported by the arms, and agear wheel' fast on the drive-shaft in position to mesh with saidpinion-hub of the former gear-wheel, substantiaily as set forth.

2. The combination of a boat and incased propeller-wheels extendingthrough the bottom of the same, a gearing comprising a pinion on a shaftcarrying the propeller-Wheels, a counter-shaft having its bearings instandards rising from the wheel-casings, a gear- Wheel fast on thecounter-shaft to mesh with the propeiler-shaft pinion and provided witha pinion-hub, a drive-shaft supported in bearings connected to theaforesaid standards; a

gear-Wheelv fast on the drive-shaft inv position toN mesh with saidpinion-huh of the former gear-wheel, ratchet-wheels rigid on saiddriveshaft, cranks loose on the aforesaid driveshaft, andspring-controlled dogs on the p cranks engaging the ratchet-wheels,substan- Witnesses:

JOSEPH L. ROBLER, FREDERICK WOLF.

